Across a shallow strait from the northernmost tip of Cebu Island lies the small, but idyllic Malapascua Island. The island is only 2.5 kilometers long and barely a kilometer wide, renowned for its fine, white sand beaches, making it a popular summer hideaway for Cebuanos. But it was only in the late 1990s when several scuba divers decided to look into stories circulating among local fishermen about long-tailed sharks and manta rays near the island.

Stop the thresher hunt: Cebu’s Treasured Sharks Slaughtered for their Unique Fins. (2016, April 8). Panay News, p. B3.